ORR school district struggling with rising costs, shrinking revenue

MATTAPOISETT — As tight as this year's budget looks for the Old Rochester Regional School District, the outlook for next year is even grimmer, school officials said.

The dire forecast came Wednesday night when selectmen, Finance Committee members and town administrators from the tri-town area met with the Regional School Committee to look at the fiscal 2013 numbers.

This year's ORR budget was reduced by $493,000. But a deficit of $600,000 is already looming in ORR's fiscal 2014 numbers because one-time revenues are being used to balance this year's budget, officials said.

That deficit does not include cost-of-living increases for the staff or other budget increases.

The rising cost of health insurance, diminished state aid and the cost of special education have left all three towns struggling to fund public education. State aid for transportation has declined from $500,000 in 2007 to $325,000 this year and ORR's health insurance costs increased by $190,000 since last year.

Things aren't looking any brighter in the member towns.

"Now 67 percent of our budget is going to the schools," Rochester Town Administrator Richard LaCamera said. "We haven't had an increase in state aid in five years and our local revenues, excise tax and all that are just flat. Our backs are to the wall."

Other towns are in a similar situation. Mattapoisett Town Administrator Mike Gagne said that 60 percent of that town's revenue goes to fund the schools, retirement costs and health insurance.

"It leaves a meager amount to divide up among all the other mandated costs," he said.

To provide ORR students with the same level of services as last year would require an additional $1.46 million, according to a presentation made by district Superintendent Doug White. Instead he is forced to make painful reductions, he said.

"When you're looking at that amount of money you are talking about people," White said, noting seven support staffers are now facing layoffs.

"These are people who live in our community," he said. Unless more revenue can be found, teacher layoffs next year appear likely, White said.

Losing any teachers would be very hard to accept, Regional School Committee Chairman Peter Bangs said. Under the terms of the contract, the last person hired is the first to be let go. "Our young teachers are the most innovative and it would be terrible if we had to let any of them go," he said.

Teachers at ORR have also been working without a contract since August and the process has now gone to mediation.